Cantini Sonplus 5-string MIDI violin, blue/black sunburst

If MIDI for violin is among your chief reasons for going electric, this five-string Cantini Sonplus may be the perfect violin for you. This particular Sonplus has their blue metallic-black sunburst finish.

Equipped with their new ISSP system, this MIDI-capable electric violin is designed from the ground up to work with the Roland GR-55, the most popular string synthesizer on the market. Amplified tone is good, and it does a great job of driving the Roland GR-55 for MIDI performance or recording.

All the way from Italy comes the latest contender for the MIDI violin throne. Carlo Cantini's MIDI violins were designed from the ground up to accurately trigger the most popular MIDI controller for stringed instruments on the market. As a result, the Cantini Sonplus is one of only a few MIDI-capable instruments currently available that work well with the Roland GR-55. Cantini's Sonplus electric violin has a sleek, modern look, with a narrow-shouldered double cutaway design and a lower bout shape that will hold most standard shoulder rests.

In addition to the 1/4"/MIDI combination jack, onboard controls include a volume knob in the same assembly as the output jacks. The back panel of the Cantini Sonplus has separate sensitivity adjusters for each string (to aid in MIDI detection) and two controls, up and down, to allow you to page through possible stored programs. The Sonplus's combo jack has a proprietary 8-pin DIN male output and Cantini supplies the instrument with an 8-pin to 13-pin adapter cable.